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Story on CD

Rumor of Glory is many things. A band of two musicians brought together despite vastly different paths. Permission to ask questions to an unseen but ever-present God. Most of all, though, Rumor of Glory is the true story of a son's return to the Father. The band was conceived in 2006 by Tony Harrison and JJ Plasencio (Plumb, Sixpence None the Richer) in Austin as a vehicle for Harrison's recent return to faith. Recalls Harrison, "It's really a story about how powerful the church can be over you." The early 1990s found Harrison working as a musician in his native Orlando. It was there that a series of controversies and deceptions in his local church directly harmed his family and drove him to stop attending services altogether. Not long after abandoning the church of his youth, Harrison's life began to take a turn for the worse. "I basically went on the road for several years, didn't have a home, and nearly got myself in trouble. Really big trouble," Harrison says. "Then there was this moment when I just began praying, and God heard my prayers and came thru in a big way! After that, I stopped playing music for myself and wanted to play music for a better reason, I suppose to pay God back." Harrison packed his bags for Austin, knowing the vibrant music scene there would provide a healthy outlet for his art. Still, he didn't darken the doors of another church for several years until a fellow musician suggested he try Gateway Church. "I knew that I wanted to serve. I didn't just want to come on Sunday and get my helping and then leave," Harrison recalls. Plasencio, Gateway's music director, immediately identified Harrison's natural musical talent and invited him to become a regular part of the worship team. Their bond continued to strengthen as Harrison shared his story and struggled to put past ghosts to sleep. Eventually the two began writing songs together, partly as a way for Harrison to heal and move forward with his life. Songs like "No Love" and "Heaven is Waiting" addressed God directly, probing tough issues like why He allows so much pain and suffering in the world. Adds Harrison, "I was just angry and hurt by what I thought God (it was really the church) had done to me and my family, and I didn't understand why so many bad things happen to good people. It didn't make sense to me until I figured out that this very trial was the one that brought me so much closer to God than I ever thought possible." Then came "Show me Jesus." "Show Me Jesus" begins as a quiet meditation on the difficulty of being faithful in a faithless world. Harrison tackled the same questions as in previous songs, and ends with a climactic finish in which he joyfully proclaims "I believe," alongside a chorus of singers. "Show Me Jesus" became the album's cornerstone as well as a personal landmark for Harrison, who was baptized not long after completing the song. Harrison debuted the song before more than 5,000 people during Easter services in 2006. Before long, a slew of other songs arrived, bringing the character full circle and comprising the album that would become The Story. "The Story is Tony's story, but the story also transcends Tony," Plasencio explains. "It's really about how much the church can open it's doors to someone who is broken. Our hope is that this record would do everyday what baptism does." "God started to put us together to write songs like this," Harrison adds. "It's very refreshing because it's very real."

Rumor of Glory is many things. A band of two musicians brought together despite vastly different paths. Permission to ask questions to an unseen but ever-present God. Most of all, though, Rumor of Glory is the true story of a son's return to the Father. The band was conceived in 2006 by Tony Harrison and JJ Plasencio (Plumb, Sixpence None the Richer) in Austin as a vehicle for Harrison's recent return to faith. Recalls Harrison, "It's really a story about how powerful the church can be over you." The early 1990s found Harrison working as a musician in his native Orlando. It was there that a series of controversies and deceptions in his local church directly harmed his family and drove him to stop attending services altogether. Not long after abandoning the church of his youth, Harrison's life began to take a turn for the worse. "I basically went on the road for several years, didn't have a home, and nearly got myself in trouble. Really big trouble," Harrison says. "Then there was this moment when I just began praying, and God heard my prayers and came thru in a big way! After that, I stopped playing music for myself and wanted to play music for a better reason, I suppose to pay God back." Harrison packed his bags for Austin, knowing the vibrant music scene there would provide a healthy outlet for his art. Still, he didn't darken the doors of another church for several years until a fellow musician suggested he try Gateway Church. "I knew that I wanted to serve. I didn't just want to come on Sunday and get my helping and then leave," Harrison recalls. Plasencio, Gateway's music director, immediately identified Harrison's natural musical talent and invited him to become a regular part of the worship team. Their bond continued to strengthen as Harrison shared his story and struggled to put past ghosts to sleep. Eventually the two began writing songs together, partly as a way for Harrison to heal and move forward with his life. Songs like "No Love" and "Heaven is Waiting" addressed God directly, probing tough issues like why He allows so much pain and suffering in the world. Adds Harrison, "I was just angry and hurt by what I thought God (it was really the church) had done to me and my family, and I didn't understand why so many bad things happen to good people. It didn't make sense to me until I figured out that this very trial was the one that brought me so much closer to God than I ever thought possible." Then came "Show me Jesus." "Show Me Jesus" begins as a quiet meditation on the difficulty of being faithful in a faithless world. Harrison tackled the same questions as in previous songs, and ends with a climactic finish in which he joyfully proclaims "I believe," alongside a chorus of singers. "Show Me Jesus" became the album's cornerstone as well as a personal landmark for Harrison, who was baptized not long after completing the song. Harrison debuted the song before more than 5,000 people during Easter services in 2006. Before long, a slew of other songs arrived, bringing the character full circle and comprising the album that would become The Story. "The Story is Tony's story, but the story also transcends Tony," Plasencio explains. "It's really about how much the church can open it's doors to someone who is broken. Our hope is that this record would do everyday what baptism does." "God started to put us together to write songs like this," Harrison adds. "It's very refreshing because it's very real."